Holik, 38, is retiring after 18 seasons, his last season appropriately with the New Jersey Devils where he won two Stanley Cups.

"I wanted to be able to walk away from the game and just move on," Holik told Sporting News. "I like to be home and just do things regular people do."

But most importantly, Holik wanted to retire on his own terms. He didn't want to do it because of injury or because there wasn't interest in him playing.

Still a strong veteran presence, fantastic on faceoffs and a pain to play against, Holik surely would have found a taker at the right price for next season but he's had enough. He said he'll take time to relax but didn't rule out a future in television where the opinionated Holik would be a natural.

A Czech Republic native, Holike finished with 326 career goals and 421 assists in 1,314 games with the Hartford Whalers, Devils, New York Rangers and Atlanta Thrashers. He's also known for his huge five-year, $45 million contract he signed with the Rangers in 2002. So yeah, he'll be doing all right in retirement.

"It was time," he said. "I've done everything I wanted and probably a lot more than I ever thought I would. It's time to be a husband and father full time."